Thursday, February 22, 2018

Leonard Padilla, In Decline

After decades of making headlines, Padilla not long ago quietly slipped out of Sacramento. He had suffered a debilitating stroke, and his life today in a Denver nursing home is nothing like his previous existence. He once chased down criminals and took swings at those in power, but today he can’t walk on his own. The formerly imposing figure has withered to 140 pounds. Photos of him today evoke Al Pacino at the end of “The Godfather Part III.” The man who ruled an empire now sits and watches life pass by him.